Netflix
Sean Astin was definitely one of the biggest surprises of Stranger Things season 2 with his portrayal of the incredibly lovable geek Bob Newby.
Which was a tremendous relief for fans, because when it was announced that Astin was going to be playing Winona Ryder’s love interest on the show, we really had no idea what to expect.
Crazily enough, Astin says he originally auditioned for the role of conspiracy guy Murray Bauman. Thankfully, they decided that Astin would be better suited to playing Bob, because they were 100% correct.
Unfortunately, as was the case with poor Barbara Holland, AKA Barb, Bob Newby, Superhero, did not make it all the way to the end. And also like with poor Barb and her #JusticeforBarb movement, there has also been a groundswell of people wanting #JusticeforBob.
So will it happen in season 3? Here’s what Astin told Variety…
Oh, Bob is good and dead. But there’s no need for [#JusticeforBob]. Bob has justice. He died in the line of duty. Bob had a skill set equal to the moment, and he did his job to save his girl and her family because he knew how, so that’s it. It’s a sad, tragic death. It might be nice to have a little moment for him, but they gave him that, too — that little drawing that Will does of Bob Newby, Superhero. That’s a better hashtag than #JusticeforBob. Everybody knows what Bob did, and Bob died heroically.
Sad, but true.
So how did Astin find out that Bob wasn’t going to survive the season?
It was pretty clear when I got the part that Bob wasn’t going to make it. I would say, “What’s Bob’s future?,” and they would kind of look at each other and then look down. I was like, “I got it. Just please let him do something heroic before he goes.” You know, it’s funny: A lot of people online were thinking that Bob was going to be a spy for the government. But for me, there was never any doubt that Bob was just 100% pure, through and through. I can’t remember what my contract was, but I think it was very possible that I could have died in episode 4 or 5. So I said, “Let me do one thing that’s heroic. I don’t care what it is, even if it’s a really small, some contribution.”
As for whether Astin had any idea how much fans would become attached to Bob Newby, Astin didn’t get it at first, but eventually kind of figured it out…
There are things about what Bob does that they wrote that I didn’t necessarily get — like the Bobmobile: “Hey, you want to go for a ride in the Bobmobile?” I was ready to do it, but it didn’t seem as charming to me. And then you walk over to the monitor and they are just giggling at this idea of this guy saying “Bobmobile.” And then you deliver it, and it’s funny. And then you read these comments after it comes out, and people love the Bobmobile! So what are you going to do?
But there are two moments that I love about Bob that I don’t really hear people talk about online. I like the scene with Will where he gives him what turns out to be just awful advice to stand and face the monsters of your dreams and look them head-on. That might be good for some people with their monsters, but Will’s monsters are slightly more aggressive. [Laughs]
And then there’s a moment with Winona outside her shop where we’re sitting and I talk about bullies and the fact that bullies pick on people who don’t push back. That relationship to Will is really special in my mind, and it says a lot about a lot of things. We are living in a world right now where bullies seem to be winning at everything. I remember David Harbour’s speech at the SAG Awards when he talked about people who feel left out, people who feel othered and lonely in life and need a champion, and how he thinks that he thought that the reason people like “Stranger Things” so much was the show was a champion for them. And I feel like Bob gives voice to an aspect of that that is familiar to everyone. If you’re not the guy who is going to puff your chest out like a rooster and go fight somebody, our society discards you. You’re relegated to “We don’t salute you.” So I think it’s really, really good to give that person, the kind of normal guy, a chance to look at a broken woman and try to bond with her.
Yes, Bob Newby and the Bobmobile may be gone, but they’ll always live on in our hearts.
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Just DO NOT kill off Hopper, okay?!
Check out the rest of the fascinating interview with Astin over at Variety.